Thai and Japanese Investigators Probe the 2007 Death of 25 Year Old Tomoko Kawashita

Tomoko Kawashita, 25, from Osaka, was found dead with her throat slashed near a temple in Sukhothai historical park on Nov 25, 2007.

SUKHOTHAI – Thai and Japanese investigators agreed on Tuesday to step up an investigation into the killing of a Japanese woman in northern Thailand in late 2007.

The parents of slain Japanese tourist Tomoko Kawashita visit the scene where their daughter’s body was found in Sukhothai province to conduct a religious rite

Pong-in Intarakhao, chief of the Department of Special Investigation’s Security Crime Bureau, said after meeting with a high-ranking Japanese police officer that both sides agreed to work on the murder of Tomoko Kawashita in Sukhothai.

He said a DNA test in Japan was one of the options for furthering the investigation, even though the Thai side has already conducted tests.

The use of Japanese high technology would be applied to physical evidence to seek new DNA results, according to Pol Lt Col Pong-in, who leads the Thai investigative team.

The DSI also raised the reward for information on the murder.

Kawashita, from Osaka, was found killed near the Sukhothai Historical Park.

She had been seen touring the park, a World Heritage site, on a bicycle rented the day she was killed.